Chapter 12
Willa Rose dressed in her own clothes on Thursday morning and took the bedding and Bo’s things down to the laundry room. “Back to being plain old me instead of a sassy woman like Bo. It had to be the clothes that made me act the way I did,” she muttered on the way out of the bedroom.
“Who says you are plain?” Tripp asked.
His voice startled her so badly that she dropped the basket, and it tumbled all the way to the bottom of the stairs. “Never sneak up on anyone that way.”
“I’ll admit I was quiet coming out of my room, which is right next to Endora and Parker’s. I didn’t want to wake the babies, but you must slip into your own world when you talk to yourself,” he said.
“Doesn’t everyone?” She headed down the stairs and realized that changing from Bo’s jeans and shirts into her own didn’t make her less sassy.
Tripp followed behind her. “Not me. I’m fully aware of my surroundings at all times.”
“Yeah, right.” She shoved what had landed in complete disorder back into the basket. “You are perfect.”
“Thank you so much for noticing.” He stepped over a bra and two pairs of panties on his way to the laundry. “And it’s not ladies first today. It’s first come, first served.”
“That’s not very gentlemanly,” she said.
“I want to get this done so Hank and I can get back to the shop, so today I’m not a gentleman.”
“No one is going anywhere until we are all three finished,” she reminded him. “Knox brought all of us in his truck.”
“Hank got his laundry done last night while we waited on the babies. Knox said he doesn’t mind taking us to the shop and coming back for you. Your dad is anxious to get to work.”
“Him or you?” she asked.
“Maybe a little of both. Being cooped up has got us stir crazy,” he answered as he led the way to the laundry room and shoved everything in his basket into the industrial-sized washer. “Still a lot of room if you want to put your stuff in with mine.”
“Mixing my underwear with yours would be kind of personal,” she said.
He raised an eyebrow. “Hey, you’ve spent the night with me and slept with my brother. What can be more personal than that?”
Willa Rose didn’t even hesitate before she dumped her things in with his. “You are right, but just remember what’s in there belongs to Bo, not me. I’ll be sure to tell her husband that it was your idea to mix up her underwear with yours.”
“You are one mean woman, Willa Rose Thomas,” Tripp said.
“Don’t ever forget it,” she threw over her shoulder on her way to the kitchen.
***
Maybe it was the fact that the house was so cold that made it seem so empty when Willa Rose walked into it later that morning.
She adjusted the thermostat and drew her coat tighter around her body.
It seemed like she had been gone weeks instead of two days.
She put on a pot of coffee and lit a gingerbread-scented candle, thinking that the scents would make it feel more like home.
She sat down on the sofa, removed her shoes, and propped her feet on a tapestry-covered hassock.
Her phone rang, but she didn’t recognize the number, so she didn’t answer it.
In less than a minute it pinged with a text that said: Answer your damn phone, Willa Rose.
When it rang a second time, she hit the accept button and said, “Who is this?”
“Is that anyway to talk to your sister?” Erica asked.
Willa Rose bristled. “What do you want?”
A sister is someone who is there for you, like all the Paradise siblings, not one who calls or comes by when they need something.
“You haven’t changed. You’ve always thought you were better than me.”
“I’d say it was the other way around,” Willa Rose snapped.
“I didn’t call to argue.” Erica’s voice changed to almost nice.
Is there hope even yet? Willa Rose wondered.
“I haven’t heard from you in nearly a year, and I’ve tried to call several times.” Willa Rose dialed back her own anger.
“I changed my phone number a couple of times. Yes, men were involved,” Erica said, “so don’t go getting all preachy at me. Are you and Hank in Poetry still? Or have you finally talked him into selling that antique mall that Mama called home?”
Willa Rose bit back a groan but decided to try to be nice one more time. “No, we moved to Spanish Fort. It might or might not be permanent,” she answered.
“Are you still with that rich guy?”
“No, we broke up just before Mama passed away, which you would know if you would keep in touch,” Willa Rose told her.
“My bad,” Erica said with a chuckle.
“Are you coming home for Christmas? If so, we are up near the Red River. Spanish Fort, just a little north of Nocona where our great-grandparents are buried.”
“Not for Christmas but probably a little before. I’m pregnant and the baby is due any day. I planned to put it up for adoption, but…”
“You are what?” Willa Rose felt the room take a couple of spins.
“You heard me. I’m pregnant, and I do not want the baby,” she answered. “Do you want to take the child?”
“You can’t just give a baby away,” Willa Rose whispered. “There’s laws against that, isn’t there?”
“Yes, I can, but since you are blood kin, I want you to have a chance before I sign adoption papers,” she said.
“But…”
“I’ve looked into things and talked to the right people. There is a lot of paperwork, but you can be assigned guardianship, and then in a few months we’ll go to court, and you can adopt the child.”
“Erica, why don’t you think about this…”
“I have, and I told you years ago that I do not want to be a mother. So, what do you say?”
Willa Rose felt as if all the air had left her body. What did she say? She couldn’t let her mother’s only grandchild be given to strangers, and yet, was she ready to take on that kind of responsibility? She was in a new town, a new house, and wasn’t even sure about staying for more than a year.
“Of course, I’ll take the baby and raise it, but are you sure about this?” she finally answered. “What kind of legal stuff is involved?”
“I’ve got a good lawyer who will help navigate me through the whole process. Since you are family, he says that it will require a couple of court visits. I’m willing to come back to Texas for those, and I will pay for everything.” Erica sounded relieved.
“When is the baby due, and is it a boy or girl?”
“I don’t know what it is, but it’s due in two weeks,” she said. “I don’t want to see or hold it, so the arrangements might be made for someone else to bring it to you.”
“Erica, that tells me that you aren’t sure.” Willa Rose’s chest tightened at the very idea of having a child and not wanting to even see it. “If we do this, I couldn’t bear to lose the baby if you change your mind.”
“I will not change my mind,” Erica said.
“What about the baby’s father? Doesn’t he have rights?”
“He’s dead,” she answered. “I have the death certificate to prove it. An aneurysm two months ago, but we had already decided that we didn’t want to be saddled down with a baby.”
“Grandparents?” Willa Rose asked.
“Also dead,” Erica answered flatly. “Are you going to change your mind?”
“No, never, but…”
“Okay, then. Goodbye, Willa Rose,” she said, and the screen went dark.
There’s nothing to worry about or to even get excited about , Willa Rose told herself. Erica has always been fickle, but she has Mama’s genes, and she will never give up her baby once she holds it in her arms.
***
Tripp was tapping in the last part of an intricate rose on a lady’s belt when Willa Rose arrived at noon.
“Hello!” He looked up and smiled. “I’m glad to see you. This morning has been dragging.”
“To me it’s going by fast,” Hank said and waved at her. “I’m just glad that the place has warmed up.”
“Hello to both of you,” Willa Rose set a slow cooker on the table. “I made a pot of chili and brought it for lunch.”
“Bless your heart!” Tripp said.
“In a good or bad way?” she asked.
“The best,” Tripp answered.
“There’s corn bread, corn chips, and cheese in the vehicle. Daddy likes chili pie, so I brought everything we needed. If you’ll go get it, I’ll get out some bowls and spoons.”
Tripp put on his coat and headed across the room. “Gladly. This is quite a treat from cold sandwiches.”
Hank looked up and smiled. “How did you know that I’ve been craving chili for days?”
“You always said that it’s cold weather food,” Willa Rose reminded her father. She wanted to tell him about Erica’s phone call, but she still didn’t believe it would ever happen. No need in getting his hopes up about a grandbaby.
Tripp came back into the shop with a box in his arms. “I can smell the chili from here. It’s best when there’s a foot of snow outside.”
Hank left the workstation and moved over to the table.
“Is the carnival is getting ready to move out?” Willa Rose asked. Anything to keep from blurting out the news of Erica’s baby.
“Mary Jane and Joe Clay have invited them to stay until after the Christmas program. If they agree and the roads are clear, they’ll leave on Monday,” Tripp said.
“About this program…” Willa Rose said as she dipped out the first bowl of chili and handed the ladle to Hank.
“Is it a big thing? How many people will attend? And while I’m asking questions, how come no one is putting as much emphasis on Brodie and Audrey’s wedding as they are on the Christmas thing? ”
“I don’t know how many folks will attend the program.
We arrived too late to get in all that last year, so we haven’t attended any of the events that go on during this month,” Tripp answered and took the ladle from Hank.
“The reason behind the wedding is that the house is already decorated, and the wedding is a small affair in the house. Audrey wanted the party to be their reception. Brodie told me that they would leave the next morning for their honeymoon.”
“Where’s that?” Hank asked.